Men on trial for alleged backpacker rape in abandoned unit

TWO men are on trial accused of raping a European backpacker in an abandoned Airlie Beach unit.

Ashley John Hickman, 29, and Peter John Cunningham, 45, have pleaded not guilty in the District Court in Mackay to rape and sexual assault. Mr Hickman pleaded not guilty to three further counts of rape.

During the trial, a police officer testified that two women entered the Whitsunday police station about 2am on November 2, 2015.

He said one, the alleged victim, had been red in the face, shaky and upset.

Later that morning police interviewed Mr Hickman and Mr Cunningham in relation to a rape complaint. The video tape of the interviews were played to the jury.

Mr Cunningham told police that he'd met the girl about a week prior, when he'd given her a lift from Bowen.

He said that on the night of November 1, he'd stopped at a backpacker's bar for a beer with Mr Hickman. The girl joined them in drinking.

Mr Hickman told police that on the night they'd all had a "few puffs" of cocaine. He said the woman had been "keen as" for sex and the three had gone to the abandoned unit next door to Mr Hickman's.

Two men who were working as security guards at the bar on the night testified during the trial.

One said he'd initially thought Mr Hickman and the woman were a couple, as they'd been touching, kissing and hugging. He said then later in the evening he'd seen her behaving the same way with Mr Cunningham.

The other guard said on the night, every time he'd walked near the three people he'd heard "sexual comments".

He said he'd formed the impression the woman had been "keen to leave with them that night" for a threesome.

The guard said he'd heard one of the men ask the women how far they could go, and she'd replied "you can tie my hands but not my legs".

Mr Hickman's fiance of 18 months testified that he was "respectful" during the trial.

Defence barrister Scott McLennan said the backpacker had never said "no" or "stop" during the sexual activity.

He said Mr Hickman had stopped having sex with her when she'd said she needed some air.

Defence barrister Stephen Byrne said then, Mr Hickman had got up to get her water and returned to see she had left. He said the woman had a boyfriend and may have had an "attack of the guilts" prior to leaving.

Mr Byrne said the woman had walked past the entry to her apartment in order to get to Mr Cunningham's car to leave. He said she could have gone home.

He said it was "very disappointing" that police had not taken the backpacker bar's CCTV footage, which he said would have supported the security guards' observations.

Crown prosecutor Andrew Walklate said Mr Cunningham's first account to police was that he hadn't done anything sexual with the woman and had stayed in the kitchen pantry. Mr Walklate said that later, Mr McLennan hadn't challenged that there had been oral sex between the woman and Mr Cunningham.

Mr Walklate said the woman's immediate reaction - that she'd ran out, flagged down a taxi, gone to the police station and made a complaint - was not the result of a "freak out" on drugs, as Mr Hickman had suggested to police.

He said there had been discrepancies between the security guards' statements.